The results of a new survey by Delta Dental of Colorado Foundation (DDCOF) show that while less Colorado children are consuming juice daily, fewer parents consider baby teeth as important as adult teeth and understand that cavities can spread from baby teeth to adult teeth.

9News It’s called a “silent epidemic” in the state of Colorado: poor dental health in kids. “It can impair a child’s ability to eat, to form words,” said Wyatt Hornsby with the Delta Dental of Colorado Foundation. In Colorado, the public health numbers are staggering. Tooth decay affects about 40-percent of kindergartners and 55-percent of third graders.

CPR At a downtown Denver clinic, a skinny 7-year-old with straight black hair named Marlene is getting a pair of fillings. Dr. Patty Braun, a pediatrician and oral health specialist at Denver Health, talks with Marlene about what she drinks, asking if she drinks tap water.